Looking live on a lubricated Lane Stadium, where the denizens have been enjoying the beginning of Indian Summer since early in the day. The 4pm kick-off welcome to most. They have come to kick tail and drink some beer, and it looks like they had to leave the beer at the tailgates!
Let's get down to business!
1st Quarter
15:00 Hokies to kick off first, Edmunds got down there in a hurry. Didn't look gimpy to me.
14:54 Corey Marshall scares me, and I'm 270 miles away. Had the ballcarrier, but failed to wrap up. More of THAT please!
13:34 Dadi Nicolas almost jumps off-side, catches himself, backs off the line, and still blows past his man and got tackled from behind by the OL. Just an extraordinary display of foot speed by Nicolas. Honestly believe he has the ability to be our first double digit sackmaster since the Terrordome.
13:23 W&M head coach Jimmy Laycock appears to be in a constant state of beleaguerment. Relax Jimmy, this is a money game, y'all are getting paid regardless!
13:15 The advent of the Brewer era after the mule W&M dressed up as a punter pinned VT back at their own 15.
13:09 JC Coleman starts. All I can see is Josh Sweat in a VT uniform next year when JC takes the ball. Kind of like a 25 year old stuck sleeping with an Octogenarian billionaire. Let's just look at the ceiling and get this over with.
11:52 Brewer looking crisp out of the huddle, actually what looks like a no-huddle here. Loeffler's Hokies ain't your daddy's Hokies.
11:29 And there it is, a batted ball. Let the murmurings about a short QB begin. He does need to watch his arm slot, and make sure not to relax his release point.
11:25 Penalty on JC Coleman? False starting?
10:55 Can I get one of the Vitamin Waters that Bucky Hodges drinks?
10:33 Trickeration with the end-around to Stanford. Since it worked, how many times will we run this play today? 3? 4? Great play compounded by a W&M player who continued to pursue the play without his helmet. I thought they were supposed to be "Ivy League Smart" over there? I mean we already know they're a tough crowd over there.
9:50 Dammit Wang. You bought property behind the Great Wall, on the GOOD SIDE! You're smarter than that. RS-Sr making rookie mistakes.
9:24 Wait, whuuuuuu? Brewer takes off, and shows the scoots!!!! I had no idea. Reminiscent of Heath Shuler, kind of sinewy runner like Roger Staubach too....yes, I realize my comparisons are to white guys. Sue me.
7:36 Isaiah Ford picking up where he left off in the closed scrimmage, scores Hokies first TD of the season on a reception in the teens. Simply fantastic awareness by Brewer on the drive hitting 6-of-8 throws. FCS opponent or no, you still have to perform. Freshman WR Cam Philips was out there lined up in the slot as well.
7:30 Horrible Wildcat trickery fools Hokies left front, and the W&M RB took it 40 yards.
4:55 Had that ball been more catchable perhaps Facyson gets called for face-guarding. Dodged an auto-first there. W&M calls a timeout in the red zone on 3rd and 12, ill-advised?
4:48 Yep, they only underthrew the marker by 9 yards. Great use of that timeout, Tribe.
4:00 Shutout dreams are over. Tribe FG. Hoping that's all we allow today. &#!$ Wildcat.
1:22 Brewer with another tipped ball leads to W&M pick on their half of the 50. Brewer on the sideline looks pretty collected. Looks like he's heard whatever the coaches upstairs are saying before.
1:08 With great coverage by Facyson, a real nice throw and catch for 40 or so yards by W&M QB/WR tandem. Tribe threatening on the Hokie 12.
0:00 As quarter ends, Cluley overthrows a wide open Kendall Fuller in the end zone.
First quarter comes and goes like a 40 degree day.
2nd Quarter
14:55 Cluley tried to attempt a Troy Nunes (see Syracuse-VT 2000) and throw it up for grabs as he was falling backwards. Tribe survives and converts a 30 yard FG. Two big plays make up almost all W&M yardage, adhering to Hokie formula of being stingy with the yardage, but still ceding points.
14:45 Deon Newsome, desperate for action decides to bring a ball 7 yards out of the end zone. Gets to the 18.
14:38 More JC Coleman. Hokies offense wanders around the desert some.
8:28 The LBs absolutely maul the QB with Chase Williams leading the charge, huge sack-fumble and Derek Dinardo picks up the freebie and takes it down the W&M goal line.
5:40 Bucky Hodges is exciting folks. He just took a pick away from the W&M DB in the end zone and turned it into a TD. Like candy from a baby. Saves the Hokie bacon from another futile red zone trip with a big 3rd down play. He and Brewer just playing catch against an overmatched opponent. Amazing that it took 3 minutes to score from inside the 5. The more things change, the more they remain the same eh?
5:40 PATs being attempted by Slye not Santamaria. That requires a nickname adjustment. We'll now call the placekicking protection unit "The Family Stone."
4:55 Dinardo and Williams finding the ballcarriers with no W&M blockers putting a hat on them. Nice to see. Hopefully they don't gas on third down against the more mobile QBs like former standout Jack Tyler did.
4:07 Pass rush adjustment disrupts Cluley who misses the snap completely. W&M lucky to fall on it. Intimidation factor in play to be sure.
3:16 Kyshoen Jarrett is going to take a punt to the house or die trying. He caught that punt over his shoulder ranging back and fearlessly took it back into the teeth of the D. He truly relishes the contact. Hopefully, he balances that reckless abandon with a little self-preservation this year. He has NFL bucks awaiting him if he can.
2:03 Helluva spin move from Willie Byrn to get the Hokies a first down.Yackety YAC don't talk back.
0:38 Drive stalls out at W&M 3 yard line. Slye boots a 20 yarder, Hokies up 17-6. Shai McKenzie established that he can carry the ball some, at least more effectively than Coleman (and Williams to this point). 9 plays 75 yards will keep the D rested, but you hate settling for three points.
3rd Quarter
15:00 The song Jump Around (House of Pain) is going to be 25 years old soon. I no longer Jump Around when I hear it, Hokie faithful look to be in my camp on this one. Must be the Hokie Respect.
14:55 Hokies got the rock first, Beyonce (Knowles) brings the ball out of the end zone several yards deep. Gets to the 15. Yes, I am going to harp on this poor decision-making until it stops! Get off my lawn you young whippersnappers!
14:17 Farris now with a False Start. We can't have these penalties next week or any high-leverage game. You hate to see Center-QB miscommunications.
13:18 Hokies picked up an anomalous (for VT) 6-of-9 first downs in the first half. Start Coleman in the second half and get stuck in a 3rd and 16. Nice pass to Cam Philips comes up short. Great to see the true FR in there not being outdone by Ford.
12:38 Hughes, not wanting to cede his Ray Guy watch-list status to the W&M punter hits a beauty, but VT bailed out and gets the auto first after a Running into the Punter penalty. That may have been W&M's last, best shot to keep this competitive.
11:56 Juice Williams shows his promise with a grinding first down run on 2nd and 5. Took six guys to gang tackle him.
8:03 Interesting formation where Malleck and Hodges both go in motion to one side, Hodges reverses motion and resets. Nice rollout and throw to Malleck in the end zone, narrowly missed a tightrope TD.
7:59 Another red zone drive stalls inside the 10. Slye boots a FG from 27 yards. Hokies up 20-6. Score should be 28-3 for my inflation-adjusted two cents.
7:59 Announcers interviewing Bruce Smith. Is it just me, or do you want to hear Bruce sound as mean as he played? He sounds so soft off the field. Just once could he placate me by growling and tearing off a real human's head? Do you think he ever looks at Alston and shakes his head because Alston is never going to be an NFL All-Pro?
7:11 Big Luuuu gets after Cluley, to where he almost threw the ball over his shoulder blindly while shrieking like a pre-pubescent girl who was presented with a real-life toad. Hokies to regain possession.
6:58 LOL. Announcers asked Bruce if he was disappointed in Alston moving to Offense. "Tough pill to swallow."
6:45 Does Brewer have a favorite toy in Hodges? Yet another outlet for a modest gain.
6:27 JC Coleman REALLY JUST FUMBLED. Now I feel like that 25 year old after the Octogenarian told her that he took a little blue guy and wants to go again!! When will the nightmare end? I have a gif of Josh Sweat running the 40 up in a separate window on a loop. Oscar Smith High School, you BETTER come thru this February.
6:14 Dadi gets the big piece of chicken! Sack of Cluley, while on his posterior and with just one hand. "Get down here boy"!
5:30 The Hokie Way reveals itself yet again. Facemask from Big Luuu after a great chasedown sack of the QB. Most of our penalties today being committed by veterans of the program (Wang, Maddy, Farris, Coleman)
5:08 Kendall Fuller perfectly played a fly pattern in man-to-man coverage. Keeping W&M just outside FG range after the drive extending personal foul by Maddy.
5:00 Dinardo played with Alston in High School. Didn't know that. Dinardo just made a big time wheels play chasing down the RB from behind after lining up on the other side of the line of scrimmage.W&M in four down territory.
4:18 W&M kicking game is on point, as the PK hits a 45 yarder to narrow VT lead to 20-9. Hokies have gifted W&M six points off of turnovers.
4:13 Newsome three yards deep, got back to the 20. We're improving...if ever so slightly.
4:06 VT having noticeable success running to the right side. Gaping hole for McKenzie. Coleman wouldn't have found it, it was only big enough to drive a small truck thru.
3:31 Ford with another catch, giving him four on the day. The spread living up to it's name here.
3:02 Shai to the house! Huge run to the right side. Nice block downfield by Philips. Sam Rogers with the block to hold the seal. Good show. Hopefully that helps settle the RB debate some.
3:02 Three TDs by Freshmen. I had stated on Twitter that the over/under for the game was 3.5. But that was for the true freshmen, so I can't pat myself on the back too much.
2:40 Best W&M threat has to be carried off. That always puts a damper on the affair.
2:32 Smelling blood and sensing weakness, Kyshoen Jarrett blows up a wildcat run. If this were the Jetsons, a robot would wheel out and sweep up the ballcarrier's pieces with a broom and dustpan and deposit them neatly in the recesses of her abdominal cavity. Ida was her name right? Or was it Rosie? I'm old.
1:30 How many sacks will Dadi Nicolas overrun this year? Too fast for his own good.
0:00 Hokies 27 W&M 9....should be 35-3 by all methods Pythagorean.
4th Quarter
14:05 Hughes aimed the ball at a W&M punt returner, precision right there ;)
13:58 If Willie Byrn were 6'2" that's a TD.....he stretched as much as his dinosaur arms would allow, but he couldn't quite reach the goal line. Nifty pass play from Brewer, Byrn finding the open area.
13:40 I am NOT pleased with JC Coleman vulturing a TD from one of my true FR who carried the rushing attack this afternoon. I know that's Shane's way of placating Oscar Smith coaches as well as trying to keep his veteran's head in the game, but that was such a cheapie. Also cost me my true freshman TD prediction, because we all know at 34-9, Frank isn't going to run up the score on his coaching bro (I mean counterpart).
13:40 Speaking of which, I need to do a feature on the 30-10 formula, because if you look at VT throughout the ACC expansion era, we've won an amazing number of games by that neighborhood of score. It's Frank's formula for winning with respect for the opponent. So many times we could have put up 2-3 more TDs and he just opts out. That's not how you win your way into the voting public's heart.
12:21 Bonner bit on a fake from the W&M runner and gave up an extra 15 yards. I notice when Bonner isn't out there getting toasted.
11:36 Jarrett extremely fortunate carrier was too stubborn to go down. They were out of bounds a good three yards when Jarrett tried to hurl him to the ground. Dial it back just a tad brother! He is going to do nicely following in the Rouse/Chancellor role. Disciplined play is a must though. Can't always be TURNT UP so loud!
10:42 Marshall just ate a guy. Hearing the Hokie Pokie before the fourth apparently triggers an intense hunger that can't be sated.
10:12 Hokies allow 4th FG attempt. Almost get to it. Nice job getting up and trying to block the kick. And my goodness, as if his football IQ hadn't already been under constant scrutiny since his RS year, Deon Clarke runs into the holder! Penalty is the same as for running into the kicker, unfortunately.
9:57 Corey Marshall just dove from five yards away and drove the QB into the turf in the QB hurry of all hurries.
9:50 Hokies pressure continues as Nicolas painted the QB into a corner for Chase Williams to finish off. W&M to attempt a slightly shorter FG now. And it's a miss! Hokies keep Tribe to under double digits. It's almost assured that Beamer will clear the bench now. Great performances by a lot of starters, with plenty left over for coaches to teach this week.
8:17 McKenzie now over 100 yards on the day with that carry. We replace him with Juice.
7:57 Wade Hansen is in backing up at OT. Picks up a holding call.
6:50 Brewer breaks containment, left one on one with a tackler at the sideline. Let's not get crazy here folks. Time to bring Leal on to mop up.
5:50 W&M QB relegated to the bench where he will feel shame. Finished 8 for 21, and if you take out the one long gainer, just 7 of 20 for about 60 yards. Likewise if you take away their RBs two carries for 60 yards that guy rushed 8 times for about 25 yards.
2:33 Leal enters. Brewer leaves with 23 for 30 (23 for 26 on balls that weren't tipped), with 2 TDs, 1 pick. An amazing 8.6 yards per PASS, which is far better than the abysmal 4s and 5s that Logan Thomas used to put up.
0:55 Watching Joel Caleb mopping up at RB like he were John Candelas is disappointing. He should have stayed at WR. He is a man without a country in our offense.
0:29 Daniel Dyer getting the final carries as Shane Beamer is still undecided what his rotation will be going forward.
HOKIEEEEEZ win, HOKIEEEEZ win....by the final score of 34-9 after a sleepy 2nd half that the Hokies dominated defensively.
Thanks for reading, and stay with us as we transition into Ohio State week starting today! Follow us on Twitter @gobblercountry as well as Facebook (if that's your cup of joe).
Have a great day getting the little ones back to school! It's easier to do it with a bounce in your step after a VT win.